Tag: sherman
Minenräumgerät “Dreschflegel”
In the course of the Second World War, mines proved to be one of the most effective weapons to thwart an enemy tank offensive from the outset. It was often the case that thousands of mines were laid as part of defensive lines, to consolidate key points and slow down the enemy. Clearing mines by…
Rüstungstagung in Hillersleben
In this article I’d like to discuss a relatively unknown armaments conference, held at the Hillersleben artillery range on June 6 and 7, 1943. This Rüstungstagung was presided by Reichsminister Albert Speer and attended by leaders from the armaments industry, high-ranking Nazi officials as well as senior officers. Unlike during the regular Vorführungen neuer Waffen,…
The Very Unfortunate Sherman
During my trip through the Ardennes last February I visited a number of tank monuments among which the M4 ‘Ginsling’ located in Wibrin. The tank was lost during a fierce battle round the town on 14 January 1945 and now stands as a memorial to the soldiers, resistance fighters and civilian casualties of The Second…
M4A1E8
The Sherman M4A1 is easily recognised by its cast hull with the characteristic rounded shape. This vehicle is of the Easy Eight (E8) series which means it is fitted with both an upgraded M1 76 mm gun and improved suspension. While the upgraded gun was already introduced in the E4 series, the new Horizontal Volute Spring Suspension (HVSS) was…
